The Psychologist in the Institution
by asc12
Summary: Though Booth insists this case is "right up Sweets alley", the young doctor finds himself committed to the case in a way he hadn't planned.
1. Chapter 1

The Psychologist in the Institution

ASC: Don't own bones. I would buy the rights but I have $4.52 in the checking account and that's a pretty good day. J

Time: Season 9/Current situations

* * *

"I'm telling you it's Smith." Sweets said his arms at his side in exasperation.

"Look Sweets, I'm not saying it's not, I'm just fielding out all the options." Booth said sitting behind his desk.

"Fine, whatever." Sweets said turning to walk out as Brennan came in.

"What's going on?" Brennan asked.

"Oh, I'm just wondering what the point of me spending hours on a profile is if no one is going to listen to the result." Sweets said leaning against the door frame, files in hand.

"I'm listening Sweets, I'm just taking it all in." Booth said finishing his sandwich.

"You didn't listen to me on the last two cases, and I was right in the end wasn't I?" Sweets said emanating frustration.

"Yes, but…" Booth said with a full mouth.

"Well here's my profile." Sweets said dropping it on the edge of Booth's desk. "Do with it what you want."

Sweets left and Brennan looked at Booth. "Something going on?"

"No, he's just in a tizzy, we still have to question all the suspects." Booth said wiping mayo off the corner of his mouth.

"But if Sweets record for being correct is high then should you not go with his selections?" Brennan asked logically.

"Don't you call his work guess work?" Booth asked and Brennan smiled back.

* * *

"Hey Sweets!" Booth called to him as Sweets joined them on the platform at the Jeffersonian. "Looks like you were right. It was Smith."

"And how many people did you interview before you took my suggestion?" Sweets asked.

"Only four." Booth said trying to hide a smile. It was true but he still enjoyed teasing the kid.

"You know it might be easier if you just put all the suspects on a wheel and spun it." Sweets said sarcastically.

"It might." Brennan said tidying up cleaning her area. "The probability of…"

"Bones." Booth said making a motion to stop talking by cutting across his throat.

"So what's up?" Sweets asked.

"We're going for a drink, join us." Hodgins said taking his lab jacket out. "Case closed, celebration time."

"Yeah well if you all listened to me sooner you could be celebrating a lot more often." Sweets said.

"Does this mean Sweets is encouraging us to be alcholics?" Angela teased.

"Uh oh, I'd better call the director." Cam continued to tease.

Sweets gave them all one of his signature unamused "really?" looks.

"I'm seriously feel like I'm losing my mind working with you people." Sweets said stepping off the platform with them all.

"Oh don't let that happen Sweets, who would save our mind if you lost yours?"

"Oh it's all good Sweets, just think of it as the inmates taking over the asylum." Booth said slapping his back as they left for the Four Fathers.

* * *

"Got a case!" Booth said at Sweets door.

"The butler did it." Sweets said sipping coffee and not looking up from the file he was reading.

"Come on Sweets, aren't you curious?"

"Curious yes, sure that you'll listen to my suspects? No." Sweets continued to fume.

"Alright listen, this time I promise to follow thru on your lead first." Booth said leaning against Sweets desk.

"Really?" Sweets asked like a happy puppy.

"Promise. Now let's go." Booth said and he got what he wanted as Sweets followed him out of the office.

* * *

"This place stinks." Sweets said as he stepped out of Booths' SUV.

"Yeah, a bunch of crap washes up on shore here." Booth said wanting to hold his own nose as well.

"So why are we here?" Sweets asked following Booth, he didn't usually come to the crime scene.

"Well, they're over here, I wanted you to get an idea of what kind of person dumps a body here." Booth said as they approached the group.

"The victim is male, mid to late forties." Brennan said as she looked at the remains.

"Did they wash up on shore?" Sweets asked as the ocean butted up against the shore.

"No, the body doesn't show any signs of having been in the water." Hodgins said taking samples. "It looks like a body dump."

"Not hard to imagine with all this garbage here. Why is this all here?" Sweets said looking around. The ground for a near mile was covered in tons of trash that included clothing, discarded furniture and apparently a body.

"The city says it's not theirs the county says it's the state's and the state says it's another state. They've been battling it out for something like fifty years. So nothing has happened. I have a theory…" Hodgins began.

"Yeah, yeah, we know…" Booth said cutting him off.

"Oh come on, this is a good one." Hodgins said.

"Dr. Hodgins, we are missing a femur, perhaps we can locate it." Dr. Brennan suggested.

"So what do you think Sweets?" Booth asked.

"This is what you give me to find a listing of suspects?" Sweets asked taking in the trash. He found it interesting that most of what was there was not actual trash, but more along the lines of "discarded" items. He wondered if wildlife took most of that away but still there were literally broken sinks. It was like the home for unwanted stuff.

"My first guess is a trash man." Sweets said and walked back to the car.

"Any idea of a company?" Bones called after him continuing the sarcasm.

* * *

Sweets was back to his office after a long car ride of listening to Booth talk. While he didn't see how the trip helped much his mind was still working away at it. He couldn't help but think of the type of trash was there, it was like a graveyard for unwanted items from various eras.

Booth wanted to make up not listening to the kid not so much by changing what he was doing but by taking him to the diner for lunch. If Brennan wanted to stay and play in the trash that was fine but he was hungry.

Booth's phone rang. "Hey Bones." He answered he put it on speaker.

"You're back already?"

"Yes, I left Dr. Hodgins to find the femur but I came back to examine the bones and I've found something very interesting." Her voice said over the speaker.

"What's that?" Booth asked continuing to eat.

"The victim had multiple fractures along the wrist and ankles. It appears that victim was often restrained while trauma was administered."

"So like a torture case?" Booth asked not looking forward to dealing with a psychopath.

"Not exactly, what is most interesting is the damage caused to the bones throughout the body. The bones have fractured."

"What does this mean Bones?" Booth asked not following.

"I've seen this damage in bones from when electroshock therapy has been administered."

"Electroshock therapy?" Booth asked puzzled. "Do they still do that?"

"Not really." Sweets said pushing his empty plate away. "The effects of electro shock outweigh the advantages. While some would praise the effect and others condemn it, it's still a dangerous thing to administer."

"Well someone administered it to this victim, pretty frequently too." Brennan said.

"Okay, thanks Bones." Booth said hanging up. "Sounds like this case might be up your alley." Booth said to Sweets who was already deep in thought.


	2. Chapter 2

2.

"So you got anything for me Sweets?" Booth asked stopping into Sweets office later that afternoon.

"I might. If I do, then remember, you promised to check it out." Sweets said still looking at his computer and scribbling notes down.

"Yeah I did." Booth said recalling the promise. "Angela got an ID on the victim, Kyle Cooper. Not much else yet. What do you have?"

"Danvers Mental Asylum." Sweets said aloud. "It was established in 1886 and for years it was a state institution. By 1960 the way that people treated the mentally ill was starting to change, it was no longer lock someone up – out of sight out of mind. Medical illness was being cured or at least cared for with soft science doctors like myself."

Booth was nodding along looking at the pictures of the historical and imposing looking structure Sweets handed him. He gave Sweets a look at his closing line.

"But some places like Danvers continued to operate as a private institution. What's interesting is that I can't find many records of Danvers having been checked out by any inspections and routine visits. If they are using electro shock therapy, and to excess, they should be exposed."

"You think our guy was a patient here?" Booth asked.

"Yeah, this place is like, ten miles from that dump site. This place was notorious for its cruel treatments back in the day. If something went wrong they may have dumped a body where they thought no one would find it." Sweet suggested.

"I don't know Sweets." Booth said looking at the photos of the pre-turn of the century limestone structure. The photos gave Booths chills just looking at them with the wrought iron gates that surrounded it. It looked like it belonged in a scary movie but it just seemed too out there for him.

"I thought you were going with my suggestion." Sweets said unamused.

"Well sure, but this is pretty out there. Besides, what do I know about going to an nut house?"

"This is what made the field of psychology what it is today Booth. Places like these did far more harm than good for thousands of people who were locked away because people didn't understand them. Many of them just suffering from what we could today call post-traumatic stress syndrome, depression, alcoholism…"

"Alright, alright Sweets. We'll go out there later this afternoon okay?" Booth said. "You can take the lead on this one. I'll stand back and make sure the crazies don't try and bite me." He said leaving.

"They're not zombies Booth." He called after him.

* * *

It was afternoon and Sweets sat waiting and ready to go with his paper work. Finally his cell phone as Booth was calling.

"Hey Sweets, we'll have to go tomorrow. Bones has got me looking thru these remains again." Sweets knew that meant he was following a different lead.

"I understand." Sweets said and abruptly hung up. _What's the point of my being a profiler if no one listens to me_ Sweets wondered to himself.

_Well I believe me, so I'm going, I was the lead anyway._ Sweets told himself and picked up all his research and headed out the door.

* * *

If the place looked imposing in the old timey photos it looked positively spooky now. The place was run down but still operational as Sweets pulled up to the gates. He flashed his badge at the gate and was quickly granted admission inside. By the time he walked thru the front door he was greeted by the director of the institution, having been alerted by the gate keeper.

"I'm Devlin Richards, director here, what can I help you with?" The man said sitting across from Sweets in his office. The man was older and seemed jumpy.

"I'm checking to see if you know anything about a patient here, Kevin Cooper?" Sweets asked showing him the photo that Angela had sent over.

Sweets quickly noticed the man's eyes shift when he mentioned the name, he knew him.

"No, I'm sorry, I don't." The director lied, Sweets could tell.

"Are you sure, I'm pretty sure he was a patient here." Sweets pushed to see how the man would react.

"Yes, we keep good records and I'm know all of our patients personally."

Sweets knew both of those thing were a lie as he had seen one computer when he came in and long since neglected file cabinets outside the office. This place was huge so it was doubtful the man knew everyone.

"Can you tell me a little bit about the work you do here ?" Sweets wondered why someone without a degree in psychology or psychiatry would be appointed to such an important position.

"We work with the mentally ill of course. Some of them are a danger to society or a danger to themselves. We treat them."

For a man who was supposed to be in the same field as Sweets, Sweets was surprised he seemed to know so little of it what went on. He saw red flags everywhere and was making a note to call in authorities to check out this place as soon as he left.

"Is that all Mr. Sweets?"

"It's Dr. Sweets." Sweets corrected to see the man's reaction. He seemed nervous. "Before I go, could I get a tour of the facility?"

"I don't think that would be possible Dr. Sweets." The man said looking down at his desk, Sweets wondered if the man had any idea how obvious it was he was hiding something.

"Why is that, it seems pretty standard in any reputable institution, is there a problem Mr. Richards?"

"Of course not!" He said standing up nervously. "Right this way."

Sweets followed along with the director down the halls to several administrative offices.

"I was hoping to see where you work with your patients." Sweets specified.

"Oh, yes." The man said and the quicker he tried to walk ahead of Sweets the faster Sweets walked to keep up. "Here we are." He said showing him to a rec room where several senior citizens seemed left behind in front of old televisions and check boards they had no real ability to play on.

"Are all of your patients like this?"

"Well, they are content. I know it's not fancy but this is a private institution, we rely on the family's money to put their kin here. We stretch it as far as we can." He said leading Sweets down the hall, he still seemed uncomfortable. "We do what we can with what we have. Do you have family Dr. Sweets?"

"No, I don't." Sweets said and thought it an odd question. He sure as hell wouldn't refer any of them here.

The two men entered the hall, one was a large man in white arguing with a smaller man who walked with a hunch and twitched to a specific rhythm.

"Perhaps we should go back this way." Mr. Richards suggested.

Sweets was about to turn when the two men's argument escalated and the orderly resorted to thasing the patient.

"Hey!" Sweets shouted appalled at the sight. Soon additional orderlies arrives to help the first orderly with the patient who screamed out in pain and confusion.

"We don't need to see this Dr. Sweets." Mr. Richards said leading him away.

"Yeah, I think I do!" Sweets said pulling away from the director. "I think a whole lot of people need to see this." Sweets said pulling his phone out of his pocket. He was almost shaking he was so upset at the sight. The director was nervous and Sweets was glad, he needed to be. Sweets didn't notice the director motion to the orderlies down the hall.

"Dr. Sweets, please hang up the phone."

"What?" Sweets said in time to turn and see the two enormous orderlies over him.

With a swift movement Sweets phone was removed from his hand.

"What are you doing? This is ludicrous. You need to be shut down." Sweets shouted as he was wrestled to the floor.

"I don't think that will be happening Dr. Sweets." Mr. Richards said as he motioned to an orderly who approached with a syringe. Before Sweets could argue the room faded to black.

"Hey Sweets, okay so my lead didn't pan out." Booth said entering Sweets office but found no one was there. "Sweets?" Booth asked again and walked closer to his desk. It was clean and clear or any papers. Booth shrugged and figured the doctor must have gone home for the evening.

Sweets woke with a strange taste in his mouth and a foggy head. As his eyes slowly opened he inhaled a damp smell and quickly began to blink as he tried to remember where he was.

He looked around and saw he was in a room, small with a window that was covered in bars. He couldn't get up because his hands were in medical restraints at his sides along with his ankles. His suit was gone and he was wearing hospital scrub like attire. Sweets shouted out for help, he wanted to get this matter cleared up immediately.

After what ended up being a half hour of shouting a large and unhappy orderly arrived at the door. He came in highly irritated.

"Oh, finally, look, there's been a mistake. I'm…" Sweets began but the orderly punched Sweets in the face. Sweets reeled from the pain.

"Shut up!" The orderly shouted. "You keep shouting like that and I'll give you something to really shout about." He turned to leave.

"Wait, I'm not supposed to be here." Sweets said trying to stop his head spinning from the mighty blow.

"That's what they all say." The orderly said as he left.

Sweets lay on the bed, unable to move and tried to see the window over him. He suddenly had the feeling of what false imprisionment must feel like. But he reminded himself to stay calm, sure he didn't have any family but his friends would come looking for him. They could find him, right?"

Minutes turned to hours and Sweets tried to stay calm but the cool and damp room made it difficult. He was about to fall asleep when the metal door creaked open again.

"He says he doesn't belong here." The orderly's voice said as Mr. Richards came in.

"Oh good, Mr. Richards, there has been a mistake…"

"There's no mistake Kyle." He said.

"What? I'm not Kyle…" Sweets head was swimming in the bad dream he was surely having.

"Yes, we thought we lost Kyle Cooper didn't we?" Mr. Richards said to the orderly who nodded in agreement with whatever the director was asking him to believe. "Glad to have you back. Just in time for treatment!" He said happily and leaned in closer to Sweets. "You need to know how things work around here son. You asked for the tour remember?"

The man walked from the room as he no longer exuded nervousness but instead a sense of confidence as he was now in charge of Sweets fate. Sweets was wondering who to blame, himself for egging him on or Richards for being insane.

Sweets felt a quick prick in his arm and saw the orderly withdraw another needle. Sweets began to get to a haze with the idle thought that he hoped it were sterile.

Sweets was pushed down the hall in a wheel chair with a squeaky wheel. Sweets noticed because the noise kept him aware. His mind was awake but he found that all of his muscles were tired and he couldn't move them. He felt like rag doll being escorted to some place.

That place soon had a name, the electro shock therapy room.

Sweets eyes swan as he desperately tried to roll off the table he was placed on to escape.

"Whoa Denny, better secure him." One of the orderlies said to the other.

"Got it." Denny answered and began to place straps across Sweets body to keep him firmly placed on the table.

If it weren't for the medications Sweets surely would have hypervenalated which, he assumed was the point of the drugs, to render him motionless while he had to endure this.

"Did Richards say where to start Stevens?" Denny asked.

"He said the usual." Stevens responded and Sweets was immediately concerned when he saw the men fumble with machinery they knew little about operating properly. He knew this was why this was so dange... _Argh! _Sweets stopped thinking as a blinding pain took over. It stopped for a few seconds and began again at different intervals.

Sweets wasn't sure how long it went on but by the time he was returned to his room he wasn't sure why they needed to strap him to his bed again, he had no power to move. He couldn't even hold in his own drool.


	3. Chapter 3

3.

Booth sighed as he hung up his phone.

"What is it Booth?" Brennan asked while pouring them both a cup of coffee in their kitchen.

"Sweets. I tried to call him last night and it rang and rang. This morning it goes straight to voicemail." He put his phone away distressed.

"It doesn't seem like Sweets to not answer." She observed.

"Yeah, I know Bones, that's why I'm…" Booth didn't want to use the word "concerned". Well not out loud anyway.

"Well" Brennan said repouring Booth's coffee in a travel mug. "Maybe you should leave now and go by Sweets place. She wasn't going to use the word "concerned" either but she knew that was what it was. If Booth was concerned, she was concerned.

Booth went by Sweets place and then by his office and at both, found nothing. Standing in Sweets empty office he picked up his cell.

"Angela, I need you to track Sweets cell. No, I it's not good."

* * *

Sweets woke to a dry mouth and the sounds of rain outside. His body ached from a dull cut constant pain from the electroshock and a sore back on a crappy bed. His sense of movement had returned but he was still restrained in place causing a great deal of stiffness. He decided against calling out again.

He knew it was morning and began to wonder if anyone would find him. He began to wonder how, Booth would remember where Sweets said he was going, right?

He was distracted as the metal door clinked open again.

"Time for breakfast." Denny announced and unbuckled Sweets from the bed and moved him to the familiar wheelchair. Sweets could move but he decided not to at the moment. Instead he played ragdoll should a moment to run present itself later.

Sweets was wheeled down the hall and tried to observe everything around him as best he could without being detected. He was wheeled into a room with several other patients, four of which were at the table. A plate of food was waiting for him but the cold oatmeal looked anything but appetizing.

The orderly left and once he was gone Sweets perked up in the chair.

"Hey, hey" Sweets called to the other patients at the table. The other two looked too drugged up to respond. "You, what's your name?"

"Don't talk to me." The patient answered. "I don't want no more treatments." He continued looking down and eating his oatmeal.

"Look, I'm not supposed to be here, can you help me get out?" Sweets pleaded. The man slowly turned his head with a drop dead serious look.

"You think any of us are supposed to be here?" The man asked in a tone creepy enough that Sweets was filled with a bad feeling. The man continued, "let me guess, you don't have any family either?" Sweets feeling got worse.

"You want some advice? Eat that, you're gonna need it." The man said going back to his oatmeal. He could hear the orderlies out in the hall talking so he dug in, he was starving after all, but it tasted like wet cardboard.

After the unappetizing meal was gone Sweets was wheeled over to a window. He wondered why for a moment and then considered a dark possibility, they were conditioning him to have to look outside. He noticed his car was gone from out front and wondered what they did with it.

When he was sure that no orderlies were around he slowly turned his seat around. He slowly and laboriously pushed it closer to the door.

"Don't do it." The man from before warned again.

Sweets slowly pushed the chair out into the hall. He saw a set of steps at the end of the hall and testing out his feet for mobility stashed the chair in a corner and slowly descended the steps.

The work was hard on unsteady feet and a near empty stomach. He was down two flights when he heard voices. He rushed behind a door as orderlies past. Once they were gone he came out behind it to stare in a room at a man in a bed. The sight appalled Sweets as he wondered if the man were dead or alive. He was painfully thin and very elderly. Sweets knew places like this got their social security checks in exchange for "care." The old man's chest rose and fell and Sweets exhaled but wondered if the man was living a life he would have wanted to.

Sweets slipped from the room and began down the rest of the next flight. He knew the steps must be near an exit. He was halfway down the next flight when he heard voices coming down from above. He panicked and tried to pick up his pace but all these flights and steps on his tense muscles made it hard.

"Hey! You! Stop!" A voice rang out and Sweets tried to pick up the pace to get down the steps. His wish was granted but not in a way he planned as the orderly pushed him down the rest of the marble steps.

Sweets crashed to the bottom platform having landed on his shoulder which now hurt like hell. The orderly pulled out a radio.

"Yeah Richards. Yeah he was trying to let himself out. Yeah, I'll bring him up, copy, level two treatment understood."

Sweets knew that couldn't be good.

* * *

"I don't see what the deal is Booth, maybe he got laid last night." Angela said tapping away on her tablet.

"If Sweets go laid last night he would be texting us all to tell us." Hodgins commented standing off to the side.

"Let's just concentrate shall we?" Booth said. His gut feeling told him that Sweets was not enjoying the morning in the company of a beautiful woman.

"Ah, here we are, his cell is right here. Wait, that's weird." Angela said clicking away.

"What?" Hodgins said now having a hint of concern.

"Did Sweets drop his phone, it's coming up as being at that crime scene yesterday."

"No, I called him yesterday afternoon and he had his cell with him." Booth said his stomach tying itself in knots.

"Let's go." Hodgins said as the pair left, much more worried than before.

* * *

"Anything?" Hodgins called to Booth who shook his head. He was bracing himself for finding Sweets body. It was not a sight he was prepared for, Sweets was not discarded garbage.

Booth saw a flicker and looked down to see a red light beeping. He reached down in the pile and pulled up a near dead cell phone. He looked around and saw some balled up material and picked it up as well, he recognized it as the suit Sweets was wearing the day before. Hodgins joined him and soon they found Sweets wallet.

"He was here alright." Hodgins said.

"Or someone was just throwing away his things."

"Then where's Sweets?"

* * *

Sweets tried kicking for a while but it left him exhausted as he was put on the table, the same as the night before. He was preparing himself for what the therapy would bring, he was prepared now, he was a trained psychologist, he could beat this.

"It seems that you are more resilient than I thought." Richards said coming in the room.

"They will find me you know." Sweets said threatening them.

"Yes, I'm sure they will, but that's not the point. It's up to you, you see they can find a body, like Kyle Cooper's, or they can find you, though I imagine by the time we're done, your mind will be too."

"I'm a trained psychologist." Sweets said back with a huff.

"Oh I know, but see, every man has his breaking point." Richards said locking eyes with Sweets.

Their gaze was so intense Sweets wasn't prepared for the ice cold water thrown on him. His body seized up from the forceful absorption of the cold. Denny turned a fan on high and pointed it at Sweets.

"There's more than one treatment son." Richards said as he left Sweets shivering on the table.

* * *

Sweets clothes were laid out on the platform exam like they would have laid out a skeletal remains.

"What are we looking for, these smell horrible." Wendell observed.

"Well, they came from a dump, so yeah." Hodgins said but it sounded curter than he meant it to be.

"We are looking for particulates. Anything that can help us locate Dr. Sweets." Brennan explained.

Angela was trying to run various locating software on Sweets phone to see what towers he had been pinging off of since the day before.

"Seeley, you don't remember anything you were talking about yesterday?" Cam asked Booth.

"Sweets was talking about how we never listen. Something about an old institution, it was crazy."

"What kind of institutions?" Hodgins asked, his interest piqued.

"Sweets said something about some old place that people would get like, dropped off at or something. Some old nut house." Booth explained.

Hodgins went over to the computer and quickly came up with a list of places and photos of four of them. Booth looked at the screen.

"That one, I think that was the one from Sweets photos." Booth said.

"Danvers. Man, I remember reading about this place. Some crazy stuff went down in there." Hodgins said.

"What like a hundred years ago? Angela asked.

"No, like in recent years. It was in the news about how this whole investigation was getting launched against them but the whole thing disappeared and the place is still running." Hodgins explained.

"So someone paid them off?" Cam said.

"I don't know, you guys never want to hear my theories." Hodgins said shrugging his shoulders.

"Okay so if we presume that Sweets went there, what happened?" Booth asked thinking aloud. They all mentally scratched their heads.

"Well I guess I will go and find out." Booth said headed to the exit.


	4. Chapter 4

ASC: There's a set up for another story (yet to be written) in the first paragraph, you know, JIC I write _another _one. Enjoy! I love to write so hope you enjoy reading.

* * *

4.

Sweets found his head bobbing from side to side as though he were shaking it in denial. He still felt wet from head to toe but he noticed he no longer felt like it was a cold wet. Instead he felt something heavy laying across him and once his eyes focused he could see what it was, a heavy heat warming blanket. He recognized it as one used in hypothermia, an unwelcome memory of another past case came to mind.

Sweets limbs were restrained so he was unable to push the intense heat blanket away. Instead he lay on the table, sweating and feeling like he was roasting from within.

He had no idea if it had been minutes of hours that had passed when Richards and his henchmen came back in.

"I'm just curious what this guy did is all?" Denny was asking.

"I told you, murder." Richards answered.

"You sure boss, he doesn't seem like the type he says he's a doctor."

"They all say anything they can think of. Look Denny if you don't need this job or think you know more than me then…"

"No, no, no, Sorry Mr. Richards, you're right, you know best."

"And how are you feeling?" Mr. Richards said looking down at Sweets who could hardly focus in the heat exhausting haze. "Looks like we're about done here for today don't you think?"

Sweets mouth was dry despite the breakfast hours ago of water and oatmeal. Still he tried to clear his throat and focus on the old miser.

"Go, to, hell." Sweets said and added a smile. Richards smile faded and he turned to Denny.

"Looks like we'll need one follow up and take him back to his room."

After a series of high voltage shocks Sweets was back in his room, his head swimming and arms striving to wipe the drool off his lip. Sweets knew he had multiple doctorates but right now he wouldn't have laid money on knowing what two and two put together added up to.

Sweets lay on the bed and Denny picked up the restraints but laid them back down.

"I doubt you're going anywhere." He said and left for a moment. Sweets looked at the open metal door but lacked any capacity to make a move towards it. Soon Denny reappeared with a cup of water with a straw and a bowl and sat them on the table next to Sweets. He left again.

Sweets looked around the room and wondered if he had gone deaf or if the room was that quiet. He knew it was a good technique to drive someone crazy. He let out a noise which turned out to be a low moan. It assured himself he was still able to hear and was glad the shock therapy hadn't done that.

The bed Sweets laid on was easily a century old, it was wrought iron and the table next to him was an old beat up wood table. It was the same way with everything else there, like a step back in time a century old. Sweets looked at the cup of water so near being less than a foot away but in terms of energy to pick it up it may as well have been a mile away.

Sweets wanted to pick it up and throw it across the room but he knew he had to eat or drink whatever he found if he were going to keep up the strength to get out of here.

It was maybe hours later, Sweets couldn't tell and there was no clock, but the numbing pain began to ease and Sweets made small adjustments towards the table. If he picked up the cup he wanted to be sure that he could hold on to it tightly and not drop it, who knew when the next serving might surface.

His own body felt electrified as though it continued to hum. His head especially continued to buzz like a light that goes out and just won't stop, a low and annoying hum. Sweets grabbed the cup though his hands wouldn't release from being balled up, a side effect of clenching his fists during the administering of the therapy. He held onto the cup with an intense connection and drained the cup.

The task was exhausting and he dropped it to the floor once he was finished. It made a loud clanging noise as it hit giving Sweets a headache. The noise summoned no one and he wasn't sure if that was good or bad. His head was now putting thoughts together again. He was getting a clear idea of what the true mental effect that solitary confinement had on people.

Next he reached for the bowl on the table and though he almost dropped it, it was soon next to him as he propped himself on one elbow. The opposing shoulder was shouting out in pain and Sweets recalled the express trip down the steps.

He put the thought away and instead looking down into the bowl. He had heard of mush and now saw that the name accurately fit the entrée. He ate the bowl, even the bug he found in it knowing that his strength was dipleating faster than he was regaining it. He assumed this was part of their plan, a sort of imposed prisonment of its own, invisible chains as they were.

Sweets lay back on the old bed and thought of ways to keep his mind sane. His mind was at odds over the idea of how to keep the hope that he would be found, he wondered why it was taking so long, or did it just feel like so long based on what had happened so far?

* * *

"What do you mean I can't see the director?" Booth asked the guard at the gate.

"Sorry sir, you'll need to call ahead."

"Did I not mention F.B.I.?" He said again pointing to the badge.

"Sorry sir, I called the director and he said this is a private institution and you'll need a search warrant."

"No problem." Booth said backing out of the drive.

The guard picked up the phone. "Mr. Richards, he's gone."

"Good, good job Harold. These outsiders, they don't understand our work."

"Yes sir, Mr. Richards." The guard agreed and hung up.

Richards cleared his throat. He had a feeling if he let that agent in then he would cause a bigger problem. Now he had to make a call to figure out how to keep him out.

* * *

"Oh don't you worry chere, I'm on it." Caroline Julian promised Booth over the phone. "You think they've really got Sweets in there?"

"Call it a gut feeling." Booth said.

"Well I'll go with your gut feeling any day Booth but the judge tends to be a little more particular when it comes to warrants. You have your people get me something to tie Sweets to that place and I'll have them giving you a full tour."

"I don't know how much time we have Caroline." Booth stressed.

"I know chere and I'll be working on it as soon as I hang up with you but we do have to work within the confines of this thing called the judicial system. And from what I know about that place, they've got it IN with someone somewhere. You want in, you gotta get me something good."

"Okay, thanks." Booth said hanging up and calling the Jeffersonian and explaining they needed something to tie Sweets being at Danvers.

"Well, we did find one thing Booth." Brennan said along with the rest of the team going over every inch of Sweets effects. "There was a very minor amount of residue on the arms of Sweets suit. We've testing the fabric and it tested positive for Nembenal."

"What is that?" Booth asked over the line.

"It hasn't been used in decades but it's a knock out drug. While highly effective it's quite dangerous."

"That would certainly tie Sweets to this place right, it's full of, old and outdated stuff." Booth knew even as he said it that was not going to holdup in court.

"I'm afraid not Booth." Brennan said and was disappointed they weren't able to get what they needed.

"Wait a sec!" Hodgins shouted excitedly from the computer. All their spirits immediately lifted.

"I've got a print off Sweets wallet. It's a match to a Devlin Richards, he's the director at Danvers."

"I'm calling Caroline." Booth said hanging up.

* * *

"Let's go." Richards said waking Sweets quickly from his slumber as they walked thru the metal door with urgency. "Hey, why is he not wearing restraints?" Richards was upset with Denny & Steven, the two orderlies.

"He didn't look like he was going anywhere." Denny said sheepishly.

"You NEVER assume." Richards yelled. "Now come one, get him, let's go."

Stevens pulled Sweets up from the bed and placed him in the wheelchair as they wheeled him away. Sweets remained still, resisting the urge to rub his pounding head so he appeared to be unable to move. They headed to a new room and he was pushed up against a window. It took him a moment to focus but soon he saw that Caroline and Booth were at the gate. A smile crept across Sweets face.

"I want you to watch this." Richards said and Sweets was fearful of their safety. He was hoping that the guard wasn't going to shoot them. Instead Booth was waving his hands wildly while Caroline was stomping her foot. They were handing the guard papers while the handed them a set back. After a moment they reluctantly got in their car and reversed from the drive.

Richards leaned over to whisper in Sweets ear. "It's good to have friends in high places."

He turned Sweets around in the chair and away from the window.

"I hope you can see now that there's no way out of here." Richards said, gloating as he personally pushed Sweets in the wheelchair back towards the electro shock therapy room. Denny and Stevens continued to follow in the distance.

Sweets felt a pang of panic knowing where they were going combined with the fact that if Caroline & Booth couldn't get in, then he just might be stuck here forever. Richards continued to talk but Sweets was thinking about the doors they had passed from the days before. He thought of the large square doors he passed the day before. He was hoping he was right as he jumped up, bolting from the chair towards the nearest opening in the wall. Richards couldn't get around the wheel chair and Denny & Stevens rushed to catch up but Sweets had already opened the door and fell into it.

Sweets could feel himself drop several floors and wondered about this idea but figured anything was better than what they had in store for him. He was relieved as he landed in a large bin full of sheets. He sighed as it was a laundry chute after all.

The fluffy pile was comforting but Sweets knew he had to get out of it. He was still trying to feed off the rush of adrenaline he had in his escape. He rocked to the side and emptied the cart and rolled out. He was in the bottom floor and found a series of small windows that looked out to the grounds.

Mustering the last of his strength he pulled himself up on a shelf and pried open the window. He felt the rush of the cool and damp outside air and it gave him another dose of energy to get to his feet and begin to run.

In the distance he could see Booth's SUV pointed away. He and Caroline must have stopped to try and make another call while they were still there. He ran as fast as he could across the long grounds between him and the wrought iron fence to get their attention.

"Got him!" Stevens shouted and Sweets felt his body brought violently to the ground. He looked up to see Booths' SUV leaving in the distance.

A winded Richards now caught up to them. "You little shit, you're going to pay this time. I'll make sure you never try another stunt like this one."


	5. Chapter 5

5.

"Well what the hell happened there Caroline?" Booth wasn't intentionally so upset with Caroline as he was at what had happened.

"I'm trying to find out Booth, I haven't had a lot of times where a search warrant was interrupted by an injunction. Whoever this guy knows he's up the food chain that's for sure."

"Well if they want to keep us out I'm sure that Sweets is in there, we need to get in there."

* * *

Sweets was more than winded from his afternoon excursion to the point he hardly noticed the needle prick in his arm. It was soon after he found himself on the cold and damp floor of a small dark room. He could see nothing, momentarily touching his face to make sure he still existed because he was starting to feel strange, very strange.

"What are you doing there boy?" Sweets heard a deep voice say. He thought he must not be in the room alone. He was sure the room was dark but he could see a face, a familiar face, but a face he didn't like.

"You miss me boy? I missed you, I missed my old sport."

Sweets felt like he was in a panic, he hadn't seen his foster father in twenty some years.

"No, it can't be you." Sweets said. _It can't be, can it? Why does he look the same as he did twenty years ago?_

"You're not real." Sweets said out loud and touched his own arm. They must have given him something. As vivid as everything was he knew it must be strong. He just had to overcome his own fears. "You're not real." He said to himself again.

"But I am aren't I?" The man said again. "I'm always with you, I'm who you are, because of me, I'll always be there."

Sweets began to repeat to himself that this was all just a hallucination, he couldn't hurt him anymore.

"I know what you're thinking, I can't hurt you anymore." The man said and Sweets realized his mind was pitting it against itself, he couldn't hide from his own brilliant mind.

"But I can hurt you, you know that and so do I. You can think about all the things that I did to you. They hurt didn't they, and you remember each day so vividly even though it was two decades ago."

Sweets tried to put those memories out of his mind but he was right, they were there, always there. He may have never become a psychologist had he not lived thru those early days.

Sweets started to feel sick to his stomach as a metallic taste filled his mouth indicating the medication he had been given began to enter his blood stream, the feelings associated with the memories were becoming stronger as was common with hallucinogens. Sweets found himself slipping down a darker hole with only the thoughts of his foster father there with him.

"Sweets?" Booth's soft voice came in. Sweets would have sworn he saw Booth next to him. "You okay buddy?"

"No, I don't think so, this is hard to…"

"You need to give up Sweets, you can't fight this, you're not very strong." Booth's voice told him.

"No, I can, I just need to concentrate." Sweets pleaded and was soon forgetting that image wasn't real, the drug induced trip was taking a deeper hold and the lines between real and drug induced were heavily blurred.

"Sweets, don't you know by now that we have no faith in you? Hell, you knew I was here, if I really cared I would have busted down the door, but I left. That proves I don't care right?"

Sweets started to consider the idea. "Maybe." Sweets said aloud.

"Right, I don't listen to your leads, even when they prove to be right over and over. I don't really like you Sweets, I never have. But don't worry, I'm not going to leave you alone, your foster dad is still here, he's going to take over. Bones and I are going to have a good laugh about how much good your soft science did you." He laughed as the image disappeared.

"Now, let's revisit what happened all those years ago, can you still feel the sting Lance?" The not so fatherly figure asked. Sweets nodded, he did remember, vividly where the marks on his back came from. And in that moment, he was sure it was happening all over again, it felt real.

"Is the stuff working?" Stevens asked Richards on the other side of the door. The question was followed with the sound of Sweets shouting out as though he had been hit and was followed by a soft sob.

"Yeah, I would say so." Richards said smiling.

* * *

"Come on people think!" Booth shouted to the Jeffersonian team.

"Well what did Caroline say again?" Cam asked having just joined the team on the platform.

"She's trying to find out who this Richards guy has paid off, something is going on with someone that they are keeping us out." Booth explained. "It's late but she' calling everyone she can find."

"Well, do we wait until we hear from her?" Wendell asked.

Brennan interjected as she could tell Booth was on edge with concern and worry. "I think that time is of the utmost importance and Caroline could be battling this issue for a long time, weeks even."

"And Sweets doesn't have that kind of time." Angela half asked and half assumed.

"With the history and allegations made against this place, it just can't be good." Hodgins explained.

"But Dr. Sweets is a psychologist. He would be okay, he's sort of made for places like this right?" Wendell asked.

"Every man has his breaking point." Booth said under his breath.

"So what do we know about this place?" Cam asked examining the evidence like they would with any case.

"They have a number of patients enrolled at the facility. I've done some research at some of the allegations against this place and they are bad. But the thing is when I looked for family members there are none. I don't even know where these patients came from." Hodgins explained.

"A lot of patients in the old days were a mixture of mentally ill patients that people could no longer care for, others were criminals that were being treated to correct that behavior." Cam explained.

"So social misfits and criminals. Great." Angela said.

"What if this place was taking people, without families, like Kyle Cooper to do experiments on. They wouldn't be missing, and honestly still wouldn't had we not going to look for Dr. Sweets." Wendell suggested.

"Sure but where is the research coming from it?" Hodgins asked.

"Wait," Angela began. "If this place isn't receiving any kind of federal or state funding and if they don't have family members paying for them, then how are they staying afloat?"

"Good question Ange." Hodgins said going to the computer.

"You know a common practice among nursing homes is to take the elderly patient's social security checks in exchange for care." Cam suggested.

"And from what I know, this place has lots of elderly patients." Hodgins said.

"That might give Caroline something to go on." Brennan said to Booth with hope.

Booth smiled in appreciation, "I'll tell her, but it's still going to take weeks. We need to help Sweets, like today, like now." Booth stressed.

"What if I go in?" Hodgins asked. "Admit me. Tell them I'm a conspiracy nut."

They turned to look at him like he really was starting to go crazy. Booth though might have thought he already was.

"It's too risky Hodgins." Booth said. "They know we're snooping around, it wouldn't take long for them to figure out you were connected to the rest of us. But I appreciate the thought."

Truth was while Booth wanted Sweets back he wasn't willing to put a second member of his team in that place.

"I'll go in." He said. "Hodgins can you get maps of that place?"

"Seeley!" Cam said surprised. "You're wanting to break in?!"

"Booth, I don't know if that is a good…" Brennan began but Booth cut her off.

"We need to get Sweets, now."

* * *

"Had enough son?" The foster father asked again.

"Yes." Sweets said as though he were out of breath.

"Oh I don't know, we've only reviewed what happened the first two weeks you were with me, we still have a few more to go." The voice repeated.

Sweets shook his head as he had just vividly recalled two weeks of pain and torture from his childhood. Pain so real it felt like it had all just happened.

"Ha, ha." A familiar voice laughed.

"Angela?" Sweets asked.

"Sweetie, you look terrible." She cooed in his hear. "I mean, you never look good, it's really no wonder you are single."

"Angela, that's a bit harsh don't you think?" Cam said joining her at Angela's side. "Dr. Sweets inability to have a stable relationship isn't a sign of his looks but the fact that he is an undesireable mate. I mean, look at the emotional baggage he carries with him."

"You said I was a nice guy." Sweets squeaked out to laughter by the two women.

"That's just what people say to be nice Sweets, we were just being nice." Cam said.

"And why?" Angela asked laughing. "Sweets is just _so _annoying."

"Ladies, stop being so harsh." Hodgins said as they disappeared. Sweets wondered where they went, forgetting they were hallucinations.

"Don't listen to them Sweets, even though, they may have a point you know." Hodgins mused. "I mean, I'm into bugs and I still got a hottie like Angela. Look, why don't you just get comfy. This is sort of like that time we thought you were goromon and put you in jail. It's where we like you best, far away from us."

"Your friends have a point son." The foster father said upon his return. "Let's show them what a lightweight you are. They can watch you suffer. Remember the time I locked you in a closet? It's just like that now. Being so alone in the dark. That was after I broke your fingers? Let's think about that. Which one did we start with, the pinky?"

Sweets could hear laughter from Booth and the Jeffersonian team as he was sure his foster father was breaking his fingers, one at a time.

* * *

"Okay these maps are really old but from the looks of the place I don't think it's ever been changed much over the years." Hodgins said placing the large maps on the exam table.

Angela brought up some photos on the screen.

"It looks like this wing of the hospital hasn't been used in years. It's most likely been abandoned to save on heating and cooling, general maintenance costs. You could enter this side undetected." Angela suggested.

"The back section here also shows heavy growth around the fence." Wendell suggested pointing. "I would get in from there."

"Booth, maybe we should go with you." Brennan suggested.

"No, I grab Sweets and we run out of there. If anything happens I don't want anyone else in trouble." Booth said.

"Well you're taking this." Angela said holding up a small device. "I can see where you are and tell you where to go. It will be like we are all going with you."

"Okay." Booth said donning the item. He was dressed and ready to go.

"Booth," Brennan said "good luck." And with a kiss he was gone.


	6. Chapter 6

6.

"And how are we feeling now?" Richards asked squatting close to Sweets who sat on the damp, cold and hard cement floor.

Sweets looked away from him.

"That's what I thought, still think your friends care about you?" Richards asked and Sweets shook his head.

"So you have no one." He said with a wide smile.

"No." Sweets said the drugs now wearing off though the notion of what was real and what wasn't was not entirely clear to him. The conversations all seemed real, the memories of his step father were real, so was it all real, he wondered. Had it all really happened? "No, they don't care." He surmised.

"Good, I'm glad you're finally coming around." Richards said beyond pleased with the result.

"But it doesn't matter, I still believe in myself." Sweets slurred in his speech. Richards smile faded, he hadn't broken the man yet.

"We'll see about that." Richards said pissed. He was irritated that this young man was so hard to break and he'd broken many men not nearly as strong. "Bring him." Richards shouted to Denny and Stevens who collected Sweets as they headed back to the electro shock therapy room.

"Restrain him." Richards instructed. The men did as requested. Richards was busy preparing a needle. He approached the restrained Sweets and administered it.

"Just a smaller dose this time. We won't need it to last as long." Richards said as he poked Sweets with it.

"Sir, is this a bit much?" Stevens asked they prepared the electro shock.

Richards gave him a look that froze Stevens blood so he continued. He figured it was better Sweets than himself.

Sweets could feel the hallucinogen begin as his foster father came back in the room.

"This is pretty bad, even for me." The foster father said. Sweets vision blurred as the shock went thru his body. The combination of the drugs and the electroshock were intense. Images blurred in Sweets mind of his foster father and Booth both shocking him and taunting him by calling him a weak duckling. He tried to suppress calling out in pain.

Sweets mantra of "I can do this" began to fade with each jolt.

"What was that?" Stevens asked but Richards was strangely hooked on administering his traumatic shocks that he hardly noticed. He finally waved them off to go and check. After they left Richards didn't notice or hear the two consecutive thuds heard in a distance. He was a man possessed and on a mission.

"Had enough yet?" Richards asked leaning close to Sweets face.

Sweets turned to face him and wanted to shake his head 'no' in defiance but decided to shake it yes, letting the man believe he were done and he could recover, living fight another day. Because Sweets knew he had a tiny thread left of hope and he clung to it.

"You're lying." Richard said as he adjusted the volts to a dangerously high level. He pressed on the button as Sweets squeezed his eyes shut. Richards thrust forward for a moment and fell to the ground. His back had been to the door and hadn't seen Booth come in. The Richards lay unconscious on the floor.

"Sweets"! Booth said wide eyed as he quickly turned the machine off. Sweets body went lifeless on the table. Booth stood in shock for a moment looking over the frail psychologist. He was pale, thin and shaking.

"Sweets, can you hear me?" Booth asked slapping his face in between removing the electrodes from his head. Sweets head bobbed incoherently but Booth held the man's face still so he had to look at Booth.

"Sweets." He said hoping that if Sweets saw him he would relax knowing it was okay. Instead Sweets face widened with horror.

"No, no, no!" Sweet repeated. "Don't, no more!"

"Sweets it's me, it's Booth."

"No, no more." Sweets repeated. "Don't hurt me Booth, please."

Booth realized in that moment that something was seriously wrong. He knew it was only a matter of time before he was discovered so he ignored Sweets pleas for the moment and began to unbuckle Sweets restraints. Anger coursed thru his veins at every restraint and upon undoing each one the deep red marks and bruises were revealed that had been hidden under them. He knew Sweets had struggled hard against them with great intensity that suggested it was the result of great pain being administered.

He untied the last one and saw Sweets had no strength. He had envisioned Sweets being detained in a room, nothing like this, and they would run out together. Instead Booth threw the tall but emaciated man over his shoulder and ran out the way he came in.

* * *

"Did you just see…." Angela began as she, Hodgins, Cam, Brennan and Wendell stared at the screen, the feed coming back from Booth's camera. They were all in shock, no pun intended.

"That…" Cam began but lost her words. "That…" She began again but was too appalled at the sight of Sweets and the condition he was found in.

"We need to get to the hospital immediately." Brennan said and they all followed suit.

* * *

The team beat Booth to the hospital though they kept in communication with him once he left the institution. There were going to alert the medical professionals there on what they believed Sweets had been exposed to.

Booth kept his comments to his location as he glanced over briefly to the trembling ghostly figure in the passenger seat next to him. Booth teetered between pissed and terrified.

Cam signaled to the paramedics as soon as Booth's SUV flew into the emergency entrance. She stayed with Sweets and the doctors as they carted him off.

Brennan approached Booth as they watched him go.

"Was that…" Brennan began but stopped. She couldn't believe it was real even though she had seen it on the screen.

Booth could only shake his head.

* * *

The team sat in the waiting room and soon a doctor came to see them. Cam was just hanging up with Caroline to bring her up to speed.

"He's stable now." The doctor informed them. "We've got him started on an IV to try and get him hydrated. Physically he's dehydrated and famished. He's also got bruising and scaring around his limbs from the restraints but those will eventually fade as he recovers. He has some evidence of other torture, there has been some exposure to extreme hot and cold conditions that have left some damage to the tissue. That too can convalesce in time. The issue that is most dominant is his state of mind. The effects of electro shock and the combination of fermentonol, which we discovered from the tox screen, have left Dr. Sweets in a damaging mental state."

"Fementonol?" Cam asked. "That hasn't been used in like seventy years."

"Yes, it's been discarded due to it's dangerous nature."

The group still sat in shock. They had thought Sweets was being held against his will, maybe roughed up, but not this.

"I would recommend that you see Dr. Sweets. A reinforcement that he is with people who care for him will go a long way." The doctor suggested and they all readily agreed.

They tried not to be surprised when they walked in the room and saw the pale Sweets lying on the bed, his dark chocolate eyes fixed at the ceiling.

"Sweets?" Cam asked approaching Sweets side but he continued to stare upwards. She grabbed his hand but he didn't move. Cam looked to Angela and Brennan who joined at the opposite side. Angela placed a hand on Sweets shoulder while Brennan put her hand in Sweets as well. Still they received no reaction.

Hodgins, Wendell and Booth stayed near the door. Though strong men they found themselves ill equipped to stand this. They admired the fact the three women were able to express care so well.

"Dr. Sweets, we're here okay?" Brennan said squeezing his hand though he still failed to return any acknowledgement.

They saw Sweets eyes move as he heard the words but failed to react to them.

"What's going on here?!" Richards' voice said as he entered the room. Sweets hands instantly clung to Cam and Brennan's hand with a tight grip. Angela could feel Sweets tense under her hand.

Booth and Wendell stepped in front of Richards not permitting him entrance.

"Why do you I think _you _had something to do with this?" Richards said pointing to Booth. Booth kept his mouth shut but he glared down at the tiny robust man. The three friends kept Richards from the room as Sweets continued to stare at the ceiling but was visibly shaking.

"I think it's best you leave." Hodgins said to Richards.

"I will leave with my patient." Richards said holding out paper work. "Dr. Sweets admitted himself to my care. I will be taking him back with me."

They were all in shock at the man's gall. Cam took a step forward to share her thoughts when Booth held up a hand to pause her, signaling that he had it under control.

"Sweets will be staying here in a real institution." Booth said with a calmness they all admired because they were all feeling the opposite of calm towards this man.

"We'll see about that." Richards said gesturing to his papers and turning to leave.

The group turned and looked at each other in astonishment.

"We need to find out who this guy knows." Booth said looking at the Jeffersonian team.

"We're on it." Hodgins said as he, Angela and Wendell left to find that out.

"I'm calling Caroline. If Richards used an injunction against you guys to get into the institution then were are filing an emergency one to keep him out of it. I'll give Caroline the grounds that Sweets conditioned worsened in Richards care. Which is easy to document." Cam said also leaving the room to make phone calls.

Brennan looked to Booth. "We're staying here, Sweets isn't going anywhere." Brennan nodded as she was also prepared to stand guard over Sweets.

Brennan turned as Sweets clasped his fingers around Brennan's hand still in his. His eyes softened and Booth sighed as there might still be hope for Sweets mind.

* * *

Time clicked by as Richards stood by the door of Sweets room and Brennan continued to hold Sweets hand. Booth stood in front of Sweets bed creating a barrier between Sweets and Richards.

Sweets lay on the bed noticing it was considerably softer than his previous one. It also wasn't damp and cold so he was pretty sure he wasn't at the asylum. This was reinforced when he was pretty sure Dr. Brennan was holding his hand. He last remembered her laughing at him so he wasn't entirely sure where he was.

"Dr. Bre…" His voice began to say and Brenan came closer to him so Richards couldn't hear them.

"We're here Sweets. You should try and get some rest okay?" She nearly whispered in his ear. Brennan ached to look at him, he looked utterly exhausted and as though he hadn't slept in days but he also looked too terrified to sleep.

"My head, it's…"

"It's going to be okay Sweets, we're going to get you better okay?" Brennan promised and kept her words simple and to the point. "There's nothing to worry about okay?"

Sweets eyes finally shifted to her quizzically. After a moment he nodded in belief of what she said.

"He's coming with me you know." Richards said with extreme confidence. "This injunction won't hold."

"I don't think so." Booth said exuding a cool exterior as he sat with his arms crossed. The two were exhibiting a show down.

The sound was broken with the commotion of people coming down the hall. Booth was relieved when he saw officers approach.

"Thank goodness you're here." Booth said standing up. "He's right here." He said pointing to Richards.

"Sir, we are here to make sure you do not interfere with Dr. Lance Sweets being returned to Mr. Richards' institution."

Booth and Brennan's mouth dropped in utter shock.

"No!" Brenan said approaching the officer. Sweets vision was still blurred so his hand searched for hers as he heard the in descriptive shouting. "Absolutely not, this man does not offer quality care, in his…"

The officer forcefully escorted Brennan out to the hall as Booth's temper flared. He cited that he was a federal officer but the two officers who stepped forward indicated they were just following orders. Booth failed to move and a scuffle broke out between himself and the other officers.

Denny and Stevens entered the room with a wheelchair and removed Sweets from the bed. With untrained hands they clumsily removed the IV causing a small tear and a slow blood drip to ensue.

As they pushed Sweets out the door Booth heard Sweets softly call his name. Booth's heart broke at the sound of it.


	7. Chapter 7

7.

_It's okay. _Sweets tender mind reassured itself. _Dr. Brennan said it was going to be okay, but where is she? Where is Booth? Why do these gates look so familiar?_

"Welcome home." Richards said from the front seat of the van. "Now back to work."

* * *

"This is not acceptable!" Booth shouted without any reservations on who heard him. They were standing over Sweets empty hospital bed, a fact that was the while elephant in the room.

"I know Booth but my hands are tied here. I would have though in no way would Sweets have been allowed to leave here but this Richards guy knows someone _big_." Caroline said defending herself.

"Why is there blood on the floor?" Angela asked breaking the conversation.

Cam came closer to examine and looked at the end of the IV.

"It looks like they very poorly removed Sweets IV." Cam thought moment more and saw the drops of blood leading out the door. "If they didn't properly address the cut, which by the way that place does anything, they didn't, then Sweets is slowly bleeding out."

"There, isn't that something?!" Booth shouted at Caroline again.

"I've got every judge I know on the phone trying to figure out what the hell is going on. I can add endangerment to the list of charges but the problem is cherie that he's been carted off to another _institution_. They will argue they can care for him. They also presented papers to the judge that Sweets committed himself."

"That's crap." Booth said pacing the floor.

"Oh I know it is honey but the judge has what he needs. This guy _knows _how to work the system. You find me a way around him and I'll bulldoze that place." Caroline promised.

"What judge did Richards take this injunction and this reclaiming thing to, is it the same one?" Hodgins asked as Caroline looked thru the papers.

Booth was anxious, he wanted to go and get Sweets NOW, he didn't want to talk. He knew how he found Sweets last time, he worried what they were doing to him this time.

"No they are different judges." Caroline said looking at the papers.

"Okay, so he doesn't have the judge in his pocket." Angela surmised.

"Well, not necessarily. He's got something going that goes pretty deep." Caroline said.

"What about the mayor, or commissioners?" Hodgins suggested.

"You might be on to something there." Wendell said coming into the room with arms full of paper work. He sat them down on the empty bed. "After you guys came back here I kept digging."

He handed out a few of the papers he had. "In 1971 the place was almost shut down when one Archibald Richards turned it from a state institution to a private institution. He had been running it for the thirty years before then, which is where most of the horror stories of the place came from. So in '71 the state and federal shut down its funding and like I said it became private. Archibald would then in ten years pass the business so to speak to his son, Devlin."

"And he continued to run it like daddy ran it." Hodgins said.

"Yes, only the money kept running low and the place kept getting worse. But it would seem that Archibald Richards found one sure way to keep the place afloat - undesirables."

"What do you mean by that?" Brennan asked.

"Richards found a way to take on people the state didn't want to care for, and namely commissioners who didn't want to deal with them in their districts. Those were namely older people who social security checks could be traded in and the other are criminals. There were several judges that didn't want certain people placed on the street so they would arrange to have them sent to Danvers." Wendell explained.

"Now whether or not that's completely illegal is apparently a gray area." Wendell said. "However, what would be prosecutable is that when these questionable practices arose, they were never followed thru on. And someone is definitely trying to keep that covered up by covering the situation with Dr. Sweets."

"Those judges are signing those injunctions to keep us out." Booth understood.

"Yes because it could implicate them as well, open a huge can of worms." Wendell explained.

Caroline was immediately on her phone with the papers in hand.

"What now?" Hodgins asked.

"Caroline works some magic." Booth explained appearing calm though his heart was about to beat out of his chest.

* * *

Why they had to restrain Sweets back to the hard and damp bed he wasn't sure. He wasn't able to move a muscle after his "welcome home" round of electro shock he was treated to. His all too familiar room danced around him. Denny adjusted the restraint from the tightest that Richards instructed to one less. Denny didn't see it as necessary and was feeling bad for this young guy, criminal or not.

Sweets was left in the dark and empty room alone with his thoughts. It was the most damaging aspect of them all. More than his cut wrist with it's slow drip under the restraint and more than the heavy wheezing chest. He was starting a thick and deep cough that the damp room did little to help.

He wondered if that trip with Booth was a dream, it felt real but it also felt real when his foster father was there too. He didn't know what was really real and what was not. It was a painful reminder that his grip on his own mind was slipping away.

One thing he knew for sure, he was still here. He couldn't get himself out and apparently no one else could either. So why should he care, if no one else did either. _They must have a new lead anyway. _Sweets thought as he loosened his grip on his mind.

* * *

"Go." Caroline said stepping back in the room.

"What?" Booth said having instantly received her attention.

"You heard me. Your squints got enough to get you in past the door. The damn governor is on your side now. All the city commissioners are being looked at and until then that place is under the control of the Federal Bureau of Investigation with orders to go thru Agent Seeley Booth."

Booth got up and kissed Caroline on the cheek.

"Let's go Bones." Booth said as they left the room.

"Now you four." Caroline said to Cam, Wendell, Angela and Hodgins. "This is a huge case to bring these people down. I'm confident Booth will get everything he needs once he gets in there but just in case I want you to go over all this with me, all over again."

Meanwhile Booth was heading down the hall calling in a SWAT team, as many people as possible.

* * *

"You two!" Richards shouted heading towards Denny and Stevens. He did not have his usual composure.

"Yes sir?" They asked.

"Take that damn brat and stuff him to the east wing."

"But nothing's over there sir. It's abandoned." Stevens said.

"Yes, I need him out of here." Richards said quickly losing his cool. "That damn F.B.I. agent is heading over here. I just got a tip off and we can't keep him out this time. He finds him we're sunk so get him out, now! Then get back here, we've got other things to deal with."

Richards left with a can of gasoline and headed for the file cabinets.

Sweets head swirled as the metal door clanked open. Soon he was strapped to a similar gurney and was being pushed down the halls. The lights went from on to not at all on and the rooms got colder the farther they went. They also got damper and the smell of mold increased.

"Where?" Stevens asked.

"Over there. Push him in the back." Denny said in a hurried tone.

Stevens pushed the gurney in among a stock of beds and unused medical equipment dating back over a half a century. Empty glass IV bottles tapped each other sounding like wind chimes over Sweets' head. The tubes dripped from them giving Sweets a headache as they glistened in the moonlight from the large windows lining the exterior.

"Come on let's go." They said as Sweets was alone again.

* * *

"Listen up people!" Booth shouted to the large group around him. "We are dividing and conquering. Riley and Wilson are leading groups B and C to secure and account for patients at Danvers. Group A is with me and our objective is Dr. Lance Sweets. I believe man of you know Sweets. I'd like to find him." Booth said and they all knew how personal this was for Booth. "Seize and capture of Devlin Richards is the objective of all the groups. Alive. That bastard is going to rot in his own damn institution if I have a say in it."

The vans arrived at Danvers and went past the empty guard shack. Booth snickered as the high and mighty guard must have fled.

"Where will you go?" Brennan asked Booth as they followed up the path in his SUV. "Same place as last time to start, the electro shock room."

Brennan felt her body tense for a second as she thought of what Sweets must have endured there.

"I'll call you in, as soon as it's secure." Booth promised.

Moments later they all saw a small fire erupt from above.

"Get the fire department on it." Booth ordered.

The agents on Booth's team who were comprised of many agents who had worked with Sweets were more than ready to go in. Booth led the charge as they finally entered the building.

They headed for the electroshock room as other agents headed to the second floor. Booth listened over his ear piece to hear they had successfully put out the fire that had been apparently set to several file cabinets.

Booth knew that was an issue but he had other sweeter things on his mind at the moment. He quickly located the therapy room and saw a man he recalled knocking out the night before, Stevens. He was trying to wipe off prints from the tables.

"Freeze!" Booth shouted. The other agents moved to arrest him.

"Where is he?" Booth asked knowing the man knew who he meant. Denny entered the room then and froze in his tracks as well. They had been busy destroying evidence.

"Who? The murder? Stevens asked.

"No, Dr. Lance Sweets." Booth said thinking perhaps he didn't know.

The two men looked at each other confused and Booth caught on.

"Richards told you he was a murder?" Booth asked.

"Don't you tell them a thing!" Richards shouted coming in the room.

Another agent apprehended Richards and not with a tender touch. Stevens closed his mouth and prepared to be arrested. Booth looked at Denny who had a softer look on his face. The agent was putting the cuffs on him and as he was leaving the room turned back.

"East wing." Denny said and Richards shouted wildly.

Booth took off with a number of agents towards the east wing, which when they approached was a large section. The agents took the enormous antiquated structure floor by floor though they were finding nothing.

* * *

Sweets had no idea if things were real or not. All he knew the last few days was hunger, deep pain and intense loneliness. And then all of those were heightened with a sense of craziness. He would have sworn he heard voices but his exhausted body pointed towards the window and only the moon to look back at him. Every movement was restrained, every movement echoed in pain. His mind and the life from his body were both slipping away.

"Clear." Voices shouted as he heard doors slam. They started to get closer.

"Clear." They said again moments later. Sweets started to summon the idea the voices were getting closer.

"Clear." They shouted again and Sweets wondered if they were real.

"Keep looking!" A voice that Sweets knew was Booth's shouted.

"Yes sir!" The response came.

Sweets wondered if it were a dream or a reality. There was one thing he knew for sure, this was his last shot. His head was heavy, his body in responsive, but a thread of hope persisted.

"Clear." The voice said followed by Booth's, "dig deep gentlemen."

Sweets knew they were coming, the door opened and flash lights scanned the room. He moved his lips but the dehydration and the deep pain in his chest kept Sweets from making an audible sound.

"Just equipment sir." One voice said.

"Let's be sure." Booth's voice said but Sweets knew they must be searching dozens of rooms, they could easily miss him. He looked around for a way to alert them.

"Clear sir." The voice said and Sweets felt near panic.

"Are you sure?" Booth's voice asked.

Sweets looked to the vintage IV stands overhead and the glass bottles hung from them. Each had the old tubes dangling from them. They were within his finger's grasp. Without having to move his restrained wrists far he wrapped the tube around his fingers. The pain began as his wrists were squeezed against the restraints but he pushed past the pain and lured the line in closer.

"Okay, next one then." Booth said with defeat in his voice. He was the last to leave the room when a crash sounded out of glass hitting the floor.

"There!" Booth shouted and ran towards the noise. Booth was ahead of the agents and was the first to reach Sweets. With the white sheet and the white scrubs Booth hardly saw the young man by moonlight for he was so pale it made Booth sick to his stomach. Sweets remained too calm and unresponsive for Booth to celebrate.

"Okay Sweets, we are getting you out of here." Booth said as the other agents arrived by him and began to broadcast it on the radios.

"Get Dr. Brennan here." Booth instructed not wanting to stop and take time away to call her. He was busy trying to undo the restraints, again.

"I need some light, dammit this is tight." Booth hissed as he struggled to unbuckle the belt.

Sweets legs were free and his second hand was coming loose when Brennan came in.

"Oh God." Booth said at the sight of the blood as he let loose of the last wrist restraint. Brennan immediately stepped forward and put pressure on the cut caused by the poorly removed IV.

Sweets drew back at the pressure.

"Sweets, it's okay." Brennan tried to calm him but from Sweets perspective he wasn't entirely sure these were friends or foes. His vision was still blurred and his mind all but lost. He continued to try and struggle away from them.

"Sweets, hey, stop." Booth said afraid he was going to fall off the table. By continuing to try and stop him from moving, Sweets interpreted that Booth was trying to restrain him, as he had in his drug induced trips. Brennan quickly caught on.

"Sweets, it's okay, we're friends, we care about you, we want to take you out of here." Brennan tried to reason with him. Sweets eyes searched hers with a confusion, he thought maybe they had done that before but yet he was still in this place. He was confused and then began coughing. It was deep and thick.

"What's wrong?" Booth asked more in regards to the latest ailment than the overall issue.

"I'm presume based on the damp and cold nature of this place, combined with the poor medical condition that Sweets is in he may be suffering from pneumonia."

"Great, just what the kid needs on top of this." Booth sighed.

Sweets coughing resumed causing great pains in his chest but also tremendous headaches.

"Okay, we're getting him out of here." Booth said looking around. "Let's leave him on this, we can get him out of here quicker. You guys, come help." Booth said motioning to two other agents.

"Don't hold him down, but just keep him from falling off okay?" Booth said and they nodded. Other agents announced they were leaving so that the ambulance would be ready to receive them.

Brennan wrapped her hand around Sweets wrist to hold back the bleeding as well as hold his hand so he would perhaps know it was not a malicious hold on him. Booth stood on the opposite side with agents behind them as they headed to the door.

Booth left another agent in charge of the scene which was being wrapped up for the most part. Now they would follow up and find the patients proper care but tonight Booth wanted to get Sweets to the hospital, and make sure he stayed there. Even if he had to barricade the doors with a sub machine gun, no one was taking his friend this time.


	8. Chapter 8

8.

"Is he going to get better?" Angela asked standing outside Sweets room as they all looked in thru the glass.

"Good question." Booth said. He was consumed with a deep sense of guilt. It had sunk in that he had not followed Sweets lead suggestions despite Sweets consistent and correct nature. He wanted to be mad that Sweets went alone, but he didn't really blame him for doing so when Booth hadn't gotten his back when he should have.

"How is Sweets even still here?" Hodgins asked, lost in his thoughts. "I mean, if it were me, I would have given up a long time ago."

"Well he's a psychologist. Despite my opinion of it, Dr. Sweets does have confidence in it and was equipped to deal with the mental hardships." Brennan offered.

"Or maybe it's just been one crap hand dealt to him after another." Booth said with a sigh. "He's never been given much in life by way of a break, left to foster homes, bad foster homes, few friends, and us, we've never been there for him. It may be more likely that Sweets was able to deal with this just since it's another blow."

"What now?" Brennan asked.

"We find the best psychologist we know to help our other best psychologist." Booth said.

"Gordon Gordon?" Brennan asked and Booth shrugged his shoulders in a sort of "why not" shrug. Truth was Gordon Gordon was the only other shrink Booth trusted and Booth presumed, probably the only other shrink Sweets trusted.

"He's a chef now though." Angela said.

"Yeah, but he would come and help if it were Sweets, he knows what's at stake." Hodgins said and they agreed.

Cam said turning to see Gordon Wyatt approach. "Speak of the devil."

"And the devil appears." Gordon added with a smile. "How is everyone?"

They all shook hands and said their hello's.

"I hoped you'd come." Booth said and they realized Booth must have called Gordon immediately after leaving the asylum.

"Well from what you said I can see why you did. I will remind you that I'm not a practicing psychologist anymore." Gordon warned and Booth felt that he might decline the idea to help. "But I can appreciate the situation and I would be happy to help, if I can. Dr. Sweets is a very bright young lad. I'd like to see him continue his work, and with all of you."

The group let out a collective sigh of relief.

"How is he doing, physically?" Gordon asked and the question fell to Cam who had been the most up to speed with the doctors.

She cleared her throat before speaking. "Well, he's not great. He's alive and his vitals are all acceptable. Dr. Brennan was able to stop the bleeding when they found him but he had lost quite a bit, how much I'm not sure based on him being moved so much. He has pneumonia and some slight tissue damage and bruising. That will heal but it is going to hamper his movement for a while. He's hooked to an IV but he hasn't eaten and even more of an issue is he needs rest but he refuses to sleep."

"That's understandable." Gordon said. "Given the heavy hallucinogens you had told me over the phone that he was given there is little doubt in my opinion that he can tell the difference between reality and flaws in his psyche."

"What? How about in English?" Booth asked.

"Those types of drugs can, if you will, bring out one's darkest demons, unfortunate memories from his past. I believe you two know the nature of those demons." Gordon said nodding to Brennan and Booth while the other three stood curious. "The other aspect is the drug feeding on one's, oh how to say it, inhibitions."

"So like if he was scared of spiders that would come out?" Angela asked.

"Well sort of, most likely they would be emotional insecurities." Gordon explained.

"So if those are the issues then what do we do?" Brennan asked.

"Dr. Sweets needs rest and nourishment. The lack of them are even further impairing his ability to think. Think of it this way, when you are hungry and tired are you able to think clearly?"

"So we sing him a lullaby?" Hodgins asked confused.

"I will suggest that you try and talk to him, see if he can't ease himself into sleep willingly, but I will warn you now, I doubt that will happen. Most likely he will need to be sedated in order to be able to relax, but I do suggest trying it. Dr. Sweets is quite extraordinary." Gordon offered them an encouraging smile.

"So we talk to him." Brennan said. She still didn't understand psychology but it would seem that regular medicine would not be the only thing that could help Sweets.

"Talk to him like you always would and he may see it as reality. If you are over the top nice then he may suspect something is awry. Also be sure to reassure him that you are there and that you care."

"That's the best you got Gordon?" Hodgins asked frustrated. He wasn't sure why but he was expecting something more, complicated.

"Sometimes simplicity is the best medicine." He explained.

They slowly headed in the room as he observed from the window.

Sweets lay on the bed in a sitting position to help his breathing. His eyes had been open observing the blurry group in the hall outside his room. He figured they were not doctors since they didn't wear white coats and upon their entrance he recognized the team.

"Hi Sweets." Brennan said trying to sound casual as Gordon had suggested. "How are you feeling?" She sat in the chair next to Sweets left by the bed.

Sweets looked at her with a disappointed expression. Brennan tired not to take it personally but she wondered what Sweets was thinking.

"You're looking better." Angela said on his left. Sweets recalled a memory where Angela told he was not good looking. He looked away from her.

The group felt a certain amount of panic that they tried to hide in how Sweets was reacting. They reminded themselves not to take it personally or to blame him after what he had been thru.

"Can we get you something?" Hodgins asked. This time Sweets didn't even bother acknowledging him.

Booth glanced over his shoulder at Gordon who nodded as though they should continue.

"We got Richards." Booth said and the group tensed at the topic of the recent past. Booth hoped he was going down the right road. He hoped by mentioning the present that Sweets could put it behind him. "He's going to be gone for a long time. So you can rest you know."

Sweets eyes looked at Booth and then away again. His body emitted a vibe that he didn't want anyone there. He then began to cough a heavy and deep cough again. It obviously caused a great deal of pain for Sweets. He leaned to the side to cough but his sore shoulder from his push down the steps combined with the tender limbs made it hard for him to push himself back in a sitting position.

Angela was nearest and tried to help him back but as she did so her eyes met with Sweets icy stare laced in a great sadness. It was as though Sweets wasn't sure if he wanted to blame them or himself more.

She couldn't think of much more to say but, "you should get some rest Sweets." He nodded and inwardly hoped they would go.

"Would you like us to go so you can get some rest?" Hodgins asked.

Sweets looked at them trying to figure out if they were friends or the ones who were telling him he meant nothing to them. It was unsettling to him that he could so easily confuse the two. It became exhausting to think about it so he closed his eyes.

"Maybe we should give him some space?" Cam asked quietly.

Gordon stepped in the room and tried to hide the hint of disappointment he carried. "I'll talk to the doctor about some sedatives." He said and left.

Angela, Cam and Hodgins said their good nights to Booth outside the room. Brennan stayed seated in the room near the door.

"Come on Bones." Booth said though reluctantly. "You should go home, I can stay."

"Did Gordon talk to the doctor?" She asked.

"Yeah, he is now, they should be in soon." He said.

"Maybe we should wait then, until he's asleep." Booth noticed the concern in his voice and he was glad she suggested it. He sat beside her in the seat by the door.

"Why does it bother me so Booth?" She said in a whisper and at first Booth thought it was because she didn't want to Sweets to hear but then he noticed the redness around her eyes.

"Because you care Bones." Booth said equally as quiet.

"But it's not rational, Sweets is a grown man, why do I feel like I need to…" Brennan searched for the right words.

"Look after people?" Booth finished for her and smiled.

"You do that all the time, you talk about your people. But I don't, I don't think of people with that much reverence, except you and Christine, and well, now I realize, Sweets too."

"Maybe Sweets reminds you a lot of you." Booth suggested. "You were both foster kids who had a tough time at it, brilliant at a young age. Though you are much prettier."

Brennan smiled and cleared her throat though it was still in a whisper to talk as her emotions were caught in her voice. "I just want him to get better."

"Me too Bones." Booth said wrapping her into a hug.

"Here we are." Gordon said and then cleared his throat when he saw the tender scene he had stumbled upon as he came in with the doctor. Gordon simply smiled at them and walked over to Sweets who was facing away from them all. A big smile came across his face as he looked down at Sweets.

"What is it?" Booth asked with great curiosity.

"What were you two talking about, may I ask?" Gordon asked softly nodding to the doctor who left without administering any medications.

"Just hoping that Sweets gets better, because while it's not a typical family structure…" Brennan began and Gordon put up his hand to halt her. "Did we bother him, we tried to keep our voices low."

"I think it was perfect." Gordon said. "Dr. Sweets seems to be soundly sleeping."

"Really?" Booth asked rising to look for himself and sure enough for the first time since Booth had looked at Sweets lately, his face wasn't crushed with pain. He was relaxed and sleeping.

"I'd say Dr. Sweets may have been interloping on your conversation." Gordon said heading to the door. "I'm just going to get a book, but I'll be back."

"No, that's okay Gordon, I think I'd like to stay for a little while." Brennan suggested.


	9. Chapter 9

9.

"No, no. No!" Sweets shouted waking with wide open eyes. He felt an arm on his shoulder and moments later his eyes came into focus. It belonged to Hodgins.

"Hey, hi." Hodgins said as he slowly sat back down.

Sweets didn't say anything and fumbled as he pulled the pillow over his head.

Jack's smile faded. "Sorry. I can go if you like."

Sweets stayed hiding under his pillow.

"Where are you going?" Angela asked having entered the room.

"I think I upset him." Hodgins whispered.

Angela walked over to the bed and pulled the pillow off Sweets head. The sudden movement shocked him. She gave him a stern "mommy" look then sighed and sat down next to him.

"Sweetie, I'd like to think that I'm patient but I'm really not. I have a terrible bedside manner. But, please, _please _can you tell me what you are thinking?"

Sweets looked at her for a long time and when she didn't break away from his glance he reached out his finger and touched the hand she had sitting on the bed. He poked it a second time. Angela was confused at first and then she recalled Gordon mentioning the hallucinogens and not sure what was real.

"I'm pretty damn real sweetie. And you can kick Hodgins out but I'm gonna sit right here and bug the crap out of you until you talk to me."

Sweets smiled inwardly as Angela always did have a way to get things out of you. It was genuine and so was she.

Sweets looked at her quizzically. He didn't want to talk, he wondered why she was there. He didn't understand anything and it was exhausting.

"Do you think that we don't like you?"

"Ange!" Hodgins said trying to get her to stop talking.

"What? Gordon said something about stuff like this right? I just want to get it all on the line. And the answer is that we're pretty far from it. Sure sometimes you annoy me because you're usually right about thing I want you to be wrong about which is when I want to be right." She offered a smile and Sweets seemed to be taking that into consideration.

"But I can't imagine our team without you Sweets. I hope you come back to us." She said as his eyes rested shut again.

After he was asleep she turned to Hodgins in a hushed voice. "What did you do?"

"Nothing!" He whispered back to her defensively. "He was having a nightmare so I woke him up."

"Nightmare?" Booth asked coming in at the end of the conversation.

"Well hell wouldn't you after that?" Hodgins asked. Booth realized he was right, he just hated that it had to be that way.

"He doesn't seem to understand that we're real." Angela said struggling to explain.

"That may take time." Gordon said stopping in. "But if you are persistent I think you will all be able to help our young friend." Gordon sat a large and old book down on the table next to Sweets bed and headed back to the door.

"Well you're going to help us right?" Booth said as Gordon headed out to leave.

"I think you all know well what to do. I will be around and visit Dr. Sweets. I think you all underestimate your own abilities. You're all doing just fine." And with that Gordon was gone.

"What do you mean he doesn't think we're real?" Booth asked Angela.

"It seems like it's fuzzy to him. I don't know what went on there but it's like his mind drifts all over the place. It's like one second he's here and then the next he's scared and shaking." Angela explained.

"I have an idea." Booth said motioning them outside. "No more talking to him." They were surprised and wondered if Sweets was the only one who had lost his mind.

* * *

Sweets woke up to the sound of heels on the floor. He slowly opened his eyes and saw Cam pushing a hospital table in front of him. She took something out of a bag and Sweets strained to focus on what it was. Cam remained quiet as she set up a game of Jenga.

Sweets eyed her quizzically once she was done. She nodded that it was his move. He knocked the tower down and pieces fell onto the bed and the floor. While he had knocked it over he had still jumped at the sudden noise the piece made.

Cam remained wordless as she sat the tower back up.

"I'll go, if you win." She said once the tower was complete. Sweets eyed the tower. This should be simple he thought and took a piece off. Cam took another piece and they continued the game. Sweets hands lacked the mobility he thought he had and was unable to steadily move the pieces. Cam knew this was an after effect of the shock therapy.

Cam knew this was practically setting the young man up for disaster but her plan was to engage Sweets mind in a simple activity combined with the company of a friend.

The tower fell a third time and Sweets looked determined though he still jumped involuntarily as the pieces fell.

"Once more." Cam suggested as she set up the tower though no more conversation ensued. She also used this time to access Sweets ability to move. He was still shaky and his motor skills were hindered by his constant shake. By the time the tower fell again Sweets looked defeated.

"We'll try again tomorrow. You have my promise, you beat me, and I'll leave you alone." She said putting the game back in her bag. She walked from the room smiling that she knew she was a Jenga master.

Sweets was equally glad and frustrated that Cam had gone. He was quickly bored and found the book that Gordon has left behind. Sweets flipped open the cover of One Flew Over the Cuckoo's nest and began to read.

"So who do you see yourself as?" Gordon asked as he came in and sat down by Sweets bed. "Chief? McMurphy?" Gordon set it up to be a trick question but Sweets wasn't playing along. Instead Sweets folded the finished book shut and pushed it towards Gordon. It was obvious though that Sweets was now tired and didn't want to discuss it. A discussion ended by more deep coughing on Sweets part.

"Well, I thought you might be through that book." Gordon said taking it. He pulled another book out of his pocket at sat it on the counter. It made hardly a noise as Gordon sat it down but Sweets still jumped at it. Gordon pretended not to notice as he left the room. He glanced back to see Sweets turn his head and read the cover. He was relieved the young man was responsive but concerned that he was obviously unable to concentrate and was still incredibly jumpy.

"Mr. Gordon?" The doctor asked and Gordon was somewhat placated by the fact he was not addressed as a doctor since he no longer associated himself with that field.

"Yes?"

"I wanted to stop you for a moment, about your friend, Dr. Sweets. We will be looking to move him in the next week or so." She said with a warm smile.

"Oh that sounds like good news." Gordon said but he somehow felt there was a catch.

"Yes, he is improving though his mobility is still limited. His eating is not what I would like for it to be. But the most concerning, physically is his pneumonia. It's quite severe and I'm afraid that too early of exposure to a new environment could be a setback." She explained.

"Right, I agree. So you will be transferring him where then, once the pneumonia clears up?" Gordon asked now following.

"Based on Dr. Sweets recent evaluation with our own psychiatrist he cannot be released on his own recognizance. He will need to be admitted to a facility until he is better." She said as though it were obvious.

"I believe Dr. Sweets would need to commit himself." Gordon said but the doctor shook her head.

"He has not shown the ability to think on his own actively. With no family he is under our care and assessments. I believe this will be the best for him." The doctor said as she walked away.

Gordon sighed at the young doctor, eager to please her bosses he figured by moving patients quickly. She had failed to recall what Dr. Sweets had just been thru and how damaging it would be. He could call in other psychiatrists, since he was no longer active, but they would most likely assess the same, that Sweets could not be on his own.

Gordon was not relaxed at the thought of needing to call the others with this news.

* * *

"WHAT?!" Booth said with the reaction that Gordon has expected. Passing nurses and doctors past the waiting area where Gordon had assembled them took notice of the conversation but tried to remain uninvolved.

"Well, I guess that place might be better, I mean, Danvers was as bad as it gets right?" Angela asked.

"Yeah but Sweets just left one institution." Booth said still highly irritated.

"Agent Booth, in my opinion is correct. Yes, this institution would be up to the current standards however, if Dr. Sweets is sent to another one, the mental effect it could have would be very damaging. I'm afraid he would see himself as 'beyond repair' if you will."

"Okay, so what do we do?" Cam asked.

"I believe we are on the right course, I think we just need to move it a little faster." Gordon said. "Things being as they are."

* * *

Sweets looked up from his book and to see Dr. Brennan come marching in. She quickly pulled up a chair as though she meant business. Sweets continued to read his book trying to ignore her. He saw her as a figment of his imagination. He was pretty sure that he had an in depth conversation with her the night before about how his field of work was useless and he should quit. It seemed very real but lately people had come by not to talk with him but for other tasks so now he wasn't so sure. It was exhausting to try and figure out what was real and what was not.

He pushed the thought away and saw she had set up a chess board. He was curious towards it but he went back to his latest book from Gordon.

"I'll win you know." Brennan said and Sweets sat his book aside.

One game later Brennan had, easily. Sweets sat up in his bed some, this time he was going to concentrate more. This time he lost again but not as quickly. After the third loss Sweets was genuinely concerned that he had lost his ability to play. Brennan noticed he lacked a confidence to begin the fourth round.

"Booth says that I should let you win a round so you will be build confidence. I disagree however. I believe that you can beat me without such trickery." She explained in her usual way.

Sweets looked at her curious which was the real Brennan, the one now or the one last night who admonished him. His hands tapped while he seemed to consider playing. Brennan saw improvement not only in Sweets brain functions but in his mobility as they played. She didn't want that to reverse now.

"Once when I was living with my foster parents, I was hit, in the face. A hard slap if you will." Brennan said and moved a chess piece. The story got Sweets attention. She was looking at the chess board so he made a move. She continued her story once he had moved a chess piece. She made a move and stopped her story again. He waited and then moved another piece. She continued her story.

By the time Brennan completed the harrowing tale Sweets stared at her for sharing such a story, uncommon to her usual behavior.

"Congrats Dr. Sweets. You won." Brennan said and Sweets looked down at the board in surprise. A small smile came onto his face.

Brennan began to pack up the board as Sweets was obviously tired again as the coughing resumed. She helped to hand him a cup of water to clear his throat.

"Thank you." He said in a near whisper.

"You're welcome." She said trying to contain her excitement he had spoken. She was so used to Sweets talking incessantly that his quiet nature had been unsettling.

"And for sharing. An experience like that can lead to…." Sweets began but trailed off. For a second Brennan saw the old Sweets, ready to help and diagnose but he stopped like he had forgotten what he was going to say. She put a hand on his for a second. Sweets looked at her as though he were surprised she were really there. Brennan noticed and told him good night.

* * *

"I think it's best to interact with Sweets in a very physical way." Brennan said and Booth literally stopped going thru the papers on his desk in wrapping up the Danvers asylum case.

"Come back on that again Bones." Booth said hoping this was going to be way better than it sounded.

"He did really well but when I left I touched his hand, he seemed surprised I was real Booth, I think he's confused. I think if everyone who visits can just do that, shake his hand or something, then he knows it's not a hallucination."

"Okay, now I'm with you Bones." Booth was relieved that she didn't have some sort of 18th century tribal dancing naked under the moon dance involved.

"I'm going to share with the others." She said ready to hand up and make more calls.

"Just be sure and get them the whole story." He said knowing they would be most likely as confused as he had been.

"Don't forget Booth, we've only got another week before they want to admit him." Brennan said still feeling miles from their goal.


	10. Chapter 10

10.

While games were exercising Sweets small motor skills and drawing his mind out slowly he was still not being, as the team saw it, fairly accessed by the hospital's psychiatrist. Thought if they were completely honest with themselves they knew that Sweets still could not disseminate between reality and dreams at times.

"Hey Sweets." Booth said tapping Sweets shoulder to wake him. It was the middle of the afternoon and they were near worry that the young doctor was sleeping too much. There was a fine line between rest and becoming lethargic.

Sweets cleared his throat as he sat up and coughed. Booth noticed the cough was not nearly as bad sounding as it was. That meant they would be pushing to transfer him sooner. Normally he would have been happy to hear that but he didn't want to give reason for Sweets to get transferred unless it was home.

"Let's go for a walk." Booth said stepping back so Sweets could get up. Booth knew the therapists has been walking with him but he didn't want to play games with Sweets.

Sweets was pretty sure Booth was real, he had tapped his shoulder, or had he dreamed it. If he went for a walk on his own would be in trouble. Either way it would get him out of the room so he got up.

At first their walk was quiet. Sweets was moderately aware that this could be a hallucination and if he was talking to himself in the halls, well, he didn't even want to think about where they would send him.

The walk wasn't fast and Booth found it painfully dull. He slowly increased his speed which also caused Sweets to step faster. A few times Sweets steps faltered and Booth tensed at resisting the urge to help him. Booth noticed the faster he walked the harder Sweets tried and the faster he became.

Booth hadn't noticed how far they had walked because he had diverted his attention so heavily at watching Sweets, but making it so he didn't notice he was watching him. At the turn of the hall Booth looked to see Sweets wasn't next to him but was leaning against the wall heaving deep breaths.

"You okay?" Booth asked.

Booth turned in worry and put a hand on Sweets' shoulder. Sweets eyes looked to him in surprise.

"Booth?" Sweets asked as though he had just gotten there. It concerned Booth until Sweets seemed relaxed that he was there.

"Yeah buddy, tired, want to go back?" Booth asked.

Sweets nodded as he realized that Booth was there the whole time.

"Yeah." Sweets said and Booth felt a surge of excitement for some reason.

When they got back Cam sat waiting with the Jenga set up. Booth said goodbye as Sweets and Cam began to play.

The tower teetered and Cam noticed that Sweets hands barely shook anymore. He was concentrating very hard as he laid the piece on the top. The tower didn't fall and he smiled. Cam tried to hold back a sad grin as per their promise if Sweets won she wouldn't come back.

Though it teetered, Cam's piece did not fall. It was Sweets turn and he chose a difficult piece and removed it. He was proud of himself but looked at Cam, recalling their promise. He went to set it on top and as started to let his fingers go he saw he had done it flawlessly. Before letting go completely he tapped the puzzle and it fell.

They both smiled and Sweets shrugged his shoulder as though "oh well." Cam put the puzzle away having not noticed at first what Sweets had purposefully done.

"Till tomorrow Dr. Soroyan." Sweets said and Cam paused. She nodded and left because she didn't want him to see the tears of joy in her eyes.

* * *

"It's my turn now." Angela said walking Sweets room. Sweets looked up and sat his book aside. She was surprised he was reading this one much slower as he had had it a few days now, the first one he flew through. Sweets now devoted all of his attention to her.

She put a large 11x14 drawing pad in his lap and laid out some color pencils between the two of them. Angela placed her drawing pad in her lap and began to draw.

"Whatever comes to mind Sweetie." She said looking at the paper. "You seem to be doing pretty well but there's still something knocking around in that brain of yours. They say art is very therapeutic right?"

That sounded right Sweets though and he picked up a gray pencil and looked at the paper. He wasn't sure what to draw and he started to think about the philosophy or drawing and the release of one's psyche thru it. He picked up a red pencil and continued to draw. He'd learned about that from college, he recalled college, a sad and lonely teenage existence though the knowledge was fascinating.

He picked up a darker gray pencil and thought about his adoptive parents and how caring they were. That thought automatically led him back to his foster parents. He picked up the black pencil.

Last night he thought his foster father stopped in for a visit. He told him to go away, he should have been twenty years older than the image so Sweets knew he wasn't real. He stayed however though this time he didn't say anything. Sweets wanted him to go but he couldn't say so.

"Hey Sweetie, what are doing?" Angela asked as she saw Sweets drawing large heavy lines in near tears. He stared at the page so Angela looked at it too, the image was well drawn, much better than she would have guessed Sweets could draw, a conversation for another time, but the image was dark and moody. A small boy in gray crouched in a corner with red pencil over him that seemed to indicate blood. A man was in the foreground, a man who looked more like a monster.

Angela looked at Sweets who continued to stare at the image. Before she could ask a single tear tipped the edge of his eyelid.

"Sweetie." Angela said taking the pad away and turning it face down. She put her arms around Sweets and felt a wet drop hit her arm followed by another. She felt his arms return the embrace and stayed that way for a moment.

Angela felt Sweets break away and was sad for a moment when she felt him fall away but was relaxed when she saw his expression was more relaxed. Angela sat down in the chair but help her hand in Sweets.

"My foster father was very abusive." Sweets said reaching for the pad of paper with his free hand. He slowly turned it around. "His punishments were severe and extreme."

Angela worried as he seemed to be thinking back to them. Sweets turned the paper over again.

"Without him though, I suppose I wouldn't be who I am today." He said though too far away in a bad place for Angela's comfort.

"Sweetie, you are who you are despite him, not because of him. I know your psycho- babble would disagree but I think you would have always been a thoughtful, adorable, intelligent and exceptional human being. Because that's just who you are."

Sweets looked down to see Angela was still touching his hand. She was real, this was real. He nodded his head. He looked at the picture he drew and while he still drew a reverence of sadness from the memories, he no longer feared them.

"Thank you Angela." He said and she hugged him again, he hugged her back.

Booth looked in, unnoticed and breathed a deep breath of relief

* * *

"So what do you think?" Booth asked Gordon in the waiting area.

"He's improved remarkably. However they still have reservations." Gordon said and it was obvious he did not agree with said doctors.

"You've got to be kidding me." Booth said not noticing Hodgins stroll by with a large something under his arms. "After all the progress he's made?"

"Think of it this way Agent Booth, his mind is like loose thread. It's woven but it's not pulled back tight so that's it's working properly. There are still gaps between the stitches."

"So how do we bring back the stitches? Can't we work on them like, outside here?"

"I see it yes, but ask yourself this Agent Booth, how would you feel knowing Dr. Sweets was at home by himself if he left today."

Booth didn't feel comfortable with that idea though he didn't want to admit it out loud. "Well what if he went home with us."

"And felt like a child needing a babysitter?" Gordon asked. "Dr. Sweets needs to return to his life, and one that while he can have help from friends, but he can't have guardians. This isn't about the physical, it's about the mental state. His physical state is improving quite well."

"And he's only got one more day." Booth said rubbing his head as though willing the answer out.

* * *

"Hey Sweets." Hodgins said and once more Sweets set his book aside to give Hodgins his undivided attention. He shut the door behind him and Sweets was curious at what Hodgins had planned.

"You know my thing is more experiments right?" He said pulling the table close and putting an object on it. It was covered with a cloth. "This is one of the few things I could actually transport out of the lab."

Sweets scooted closer to the covered object and sat close. Hodgins noticed Sweets hadn't been coughing and was getting around well. His hands weren't even shaking anymore.

"How where is an outlet?" Hodgins asked and began crawling around on the floor. Sweets uncovered the large sphere sitting on a base. He touched the large clear glass ball. Booth was walking in the room and was curious about the big fishbowl Sweets was touching.

With his fingers still on the glass the ball sparked to life in a bright glow. In what Booth saw as electric current flashing around it he would have sworn his heart stopped beating at the thought of Sweets being exposed to electro shock, or anything that reminded him of it.

"There we are." Hodgins said standing up.

"Hodgins!" Booth shouted making both men look up at him. He lowered his voice as Hodgins came closer. "What are you doing!?"

Hodgins finally made the connection between his electric experiment and Sweets recent brushes with electricity. He panicked to turn if off when Booth touched Hodgins shoulder to halt him. They both looked at Sweets who continued to touch the ball and watch it's reactions. He glanced up at Booth whom he just noticed.

"Hey Booth, this is pretty cool, have you tried it?" Sweets asked.

Booth approached as it was the most words he's heard Sweets say since before the incident.

"No, I haven't." Booth reached up to touch it and saw the electric line follow his finger.

"It's called a plasma ball. Nikola Tesla invented it though more modern versions have come out since."

"Telsa, he did the direct current right?" Booth knew that was wrong but he was testing Sweets.

"No, alternating current. Interesting guy. People thought he was crazy too." Sweets said still mesmerized by the ball.

"You're not crazy Sweets." Booth said momentarily glancing away from the ball to Sweets but they both looked back at it. "This is electricity right?" Booth asked.

"They are noble gases with a high-voltage electrode in the middle. Plasma filaments extend from the inner electrode to the outer glass insulator giving the appearance of the beams of colored light." Hodgins explained as they both looked at Sweets who wasn't bothered at all by the electricity.

Gordon stood at the door watching and then went for the doctor.

* * *

"So what happens now?" Sweets asked as he and Gordon sat alone in Sweets room.

"We will see what the doctor says." Gordon said watching Sweets carefully. Unlike the Sweets he had been before who had little interest in his surroundings he now took it all in with a restlessness.

Gordon was about to ask him how he was feeling but decided on a different way to gauge the man's state of mind.

"Did you finish the book?" Gordon asked seeing it on the table.

"I read it four times." Sweets answered.

"Why so many?"

"I don't know." Sweets said.

"Yes you do, you knew I would ask you what character you saw yourself as. So how about it Dr. Sweets, who do you see yourself as?"

"I don't really get the point of this exercise." Sweets said.

"Oh it's not an exercise, I'm not a physiatrist anymore remember? This is just fun."

Sweets narrowed his eyes as he disseminated the question over the lie and the truth.

"Who would you be?" Sweets asked Gordon.

Gordon smiled, "Scout." He said simply then added. "Young, idealistic with much to learn. And you?"

"I think it's pretty obvious, I've turned into Boo Radley."

Gordon laughed, "on the one hand you would be the hero, saving the girl you know. But your assumption there is much too on the surface. Isn't there a slightly more idealistic character who looks to save the downtrodden?"

"Dr. Lance Sweets?" A voice asked interrupting them. "I'm Dr. Clarence Lee. I've come to evaluate you.


	11. Chapter 11

11.

"How long do you think he wants to stay here?" Booth leaned over and whispered in Brennan's ear.

They both slowly walked up closer to Sweets.

"Sweets, do you want to stay longer?" Brennan asked.

Sweets looked up at them and smiled. "No, I'm sorry, I was just lost in thought."

"Good thoughts?" Booth asked.

Sweets smiled as he looked down at Kyle Cooper's recent grave.

"Strangely yes. I was thinking I was grateful to him." Sweets said turning to leave.

"What for?" Brennan asked.

"While I'm sure you would see it as wasteful, it's renewed my desire to help people. It's why I got into psychology, to help people. And in the right ways, not like places like Danvers did."

Booth and Brennan caught up to walk on each side of Sweets. They were glad he could talk about Danvers openly now. When Sweets left that day from being cleared he went home to his apartment though they all escorted him and made plans to see him the next day and the day after. He was a little distracted the first week but they kept him busy and soon his mind was back to work, as was Sweets.

"I don't think it's wasteful." Brennan said. "I think it's done some very beneficial."

Sweets smiled and they walked on.

"And" Booth began, "we've spent the last week going thru that dump site, as you suggested and were able to link about a hundred more people to Danvers that weren't on record as having been there."

"I'm glad some people found closure." Sweets said as they boarded the SUV.

_I'm just glad we found you kid. _Booth thought to himself but he wasn't going to say it out loud.

"Where to now?" Brennan asked putting on her seat belt.

"Well everyone's waiting for us at the Four Fathers." Booth said putting it in drive. "We've closed our case."

"What case is that?" Brennan asked confused.

"The case of the lost mind." Booth said smiling at Sweets.

"Our best case yet." Brennan said and Sweets tried to hide the big smile on his face.


End file.
